Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1887-03-17

ready. A flash OF mfinite pain, OF mnnlte
loSe and longing, fitted HcroSs his face. It
was gone IN moment. The face which was
bent down 50 close to Shirley's was calm, the
eyes were steady, and bright, and hopeful
He drew her hands away from her face, and
held them caressingly in both his OWE for
one moment He made step to go, then
paused and turned back, and said lightly;
ado you know Shirley, now that am
going away, and may never see you again,
I've hall mind to kiss your
He lowered his face again, and kissed her
on the lips. Then he was gone, in a moment
At the turning of the path he glanced back
at her. He stood an instant and bowed with
his hat off. Sho never forgot his counte-
nance as she saw it then, the serene, lofty
brow, the face so full of inspiration. In all
her life she never met another face so full Of
power and light and hope.
And he was goncl
Well, Shirley did not faint or weep. 1t
was never her way to do either. She covered
her face with her hands, and sat as if turned
to stone. The shadows heightened in the
west till they shrouded the earth, but she sat
there still.
= +
How could Shirley know what was pass
ing meantime, five miles awayl 1t seemed to
her in dumb, blind way, that for her some
how existence had been torn out from its
fastenings by the roots when the teacher left
her. How could she, hapless child, know
that at that very moment her future, which
looked so sure was indeed being torn loose
from its fastenings
Five miles away, on the other side Of the
village, at the moment Mr.. Morrison was
leaving her, a little vagabond boy walked
barefoot along the turnpike road. He was
anywhere from to 10 years old. He did not
know how old he was himself and surely no
body else knew or cared. He belonged to
nobody He had dropped from the clouds,
for all anybody knew or cared.
Mis- Simpkins, that stirring, industrious
creature, found him curled up asleep in all
empty hencoop when she went to take down
the shutters and open her grocery at o'clock,
as usual, one morning.
She shook him vigorously. "Here, you"
said she, "whose child are you? What are
you doin' here9"
The child sat up suddenly. He rubbed his
eyes, and stared about him. ....
"Whose child are youp repeated Mrs.
Simpsins.
Dunno
"How'd you get into that there hencoop"
"Dunno."
She shook him by his ragged collar again.
"None o. yer lyin' ter me. What's yer
name?"
Dunno"
"Don't that bang anything, nowm ejacu-
lated the woman. "Tell me yer name, or I'll
take stick to you, you little riprobate."
"Thats it," said the boy. "They call me
Little Rip. Pm the fatherless. I set on the
church steps Moll plays she's my mother.
We set on the church steps an wear a card
that says on it Pity the Blind and the Father
less People comes along and drops pennies
into tin cup. We was goin' to new place,
cause the p'lice found out she wusn't blind.
reckon Moll got drunk an forgot me-" said
he, composedly. "Say, gimme some break
fast, or I'll show you circus trick"
The infant squared off and lowered his
bristly head, as if about to butt into the
small grocer wife, goat fashion. He would
undoubtedly have done SO, but the wiry little
woman was 1.-THE as q cat and strong. On the
instant she caught Little Rip sat down upon
the hen coop and spanked him till she was out
of breath The child yelled like a hyena in
the meantime till all the windows in the
neighborhood were raised to see what the I'M
earthly noise was about
"There," said Mis- Simpkins, "I'l teachyo
to sass me, you little rip!"
He ate ravenously the breakfast she gave
him presently.
"Land sakel" said she to Jim Sweet, "jist
look at that child eat He's got face for all
the world like starved young pigeon. He
amt bad lookin' young 'un either, if he was
cleaned up, with them blue eyes. If that
hair was washed out and combed, 'twould be
as yaller an shiny as Pet Carstone's. Looks
as though his folks might Ia been some
body"
What the child had told Mis- Simpkins was
absolutely all that could be found out about
him. He was nobody's child. Nobody could
tell whence he came. He hung about the
grocery for two days. Mis- Simpkins fed
him. On the third day, she turned from
waiting on customer, and caught the dirty
little hand of this terrible infant thrust
into the tobacco case. He was stealing her
best ten cent cigars. She pounced upon him
and threw him out of the shop in righteous
wrath. ..-.. ....
''You little riprobate! Eff had the lines
around your neck, l bet ye'd stretch 'em!
Lemme kitch you in this store agin"
The child ran off in all haste, and disap.
peared around the corner. In spite Of Mis-
Simpkins he had distracted one of the cigars.
He was minded to learn to smoke. He
wandered out into the country. lie went q
long way, so as to be sure he was out of the
sight of tho village, and the hawk eye of Mrs.
Smpkins. Then he lit the cigar and still
wandered farther and farther He did not
know where he was going, and did not think
about it. Little Rip put the roll of weed be-
tween his lips, and puffed away bravely,
swaggering and taking long steps e3 he had
seen young men do. Shortly be began to feel
very bad, but he kept stoutly on, with q de
votion worthy Of better cause. Tho mail
carrier passed by in his blackboard wagon.
"'Twas tie most rcdiclous sight l ever
seen, said he afterwards. "Thar wus the littlc
cuss, lettin' on he wus smokn' Tho cigar
had great long ash on it. He clitched il
between his fingers, jess SO, like he'd seen bis
fellers do. He was desput ashy around Tho
gills and SO sick he staggered, but thar b
cooked his mite of head up and went on, as
big as Gineral Jackson" --, .-.... .r
But at last there came moment when
even little Rips giant will gave out. lli5lcgs
failed him. lie felt sure howas dying, with
that awful feeling in his stomach. 10 was
only baby after all. Hc crawled . The
roadside and lay down beside hugo stone
Tia proancd and cried bitterly as many Il big
boy would like to do, but doesn't dare, w'her
he smokes his first cigar. '"'
lfte mly. #ra-f&'t' #ui.2#E G 90